Selling groceries through the cloud in a Tier II city in India

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-24
Author(s):  
Sanjay Mohapatra ◽  
Vikram Swain ◽  
Shriram Misra ◽  
Rohit Padhi ◽  
Subhabrata Nath Sharma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Inventory Management ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Economies Of Scale ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
It Strategy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Tier Ii ◽  
Score Card

Subject area Information Systems – IT Strategy Design and Implementation. Study level/applicability The case can be discussed in Marketing Management courses and IT Strategy classes in MBA, executives from NGOs who are participating in Management Development Programs, etc. It can also be used in entrepreneurship classes. The case serves as an illustration to entrepreneurship projects, and so this case can be discussed in training program for budding entrepreneurs intending to implement cloud in its IT infrastructure. Case overview E-commerce is big nowadays in India. In e-commerce, particularly e-tail in India is witnessing a boom with players reporting achieving revenue targets earlier than anticipated. Though e-tail sites are now ubiquitous and dime a dozen with multiple offerings or specialized offerings, the e-grocery model is yet to take off on a large scale across India. E-grocery model has its unique challenges on both supply as well as distribution side unlike other e-tail business. As it deals with perishable items, it faces challenges in supply chain, procurement, inventory management, cold storage management, quality and logistics. To solve such problems, high degree of localization is needed for players in this business. It requires them to open up multiple warehouses at strategic locations in a city if they decide to have control over the goods they sell. Start-ups in this space face the problems in monitoring inventory levels across warehouses where they use disparate Point of Sales (POS) systems. There is a lack of synchronization among the POS applications across the warehouses for which they are able to take the benefit of economies of scale during procurement and distribution. Also, they face stock out and excess inventory across stock keeping units (SKUs). To solve this problem, a strategy is needed so that they can maintain data for all its warehouses through a single database and also by which they can scale up easily and at a lower investment without disturbing continuity in business. Expected learning outcomes Following are the learning outcomes: to learn about the business model and market ecosystem of an e-tailing business dealing in grocery items in a tier-II city in its introduction phase of organizational life cycle, to learn about various processes involved in online ordering of an item from an e-commerce website, to understand the various challenges faced by an organization dealing in e-tailing business in its introduction phase and to find out whether IT Strategy can be of help to overcome these challenges, to have an understanding of the Balance Score Card and Departmental Score Card, to understand how cloud can be of help to overcome the challenges and what are the possible cloud architectures to address such problems, to get an idea about how return on investment can be measured for finding feasibility of investment in cloud and to have the understanding of risk associated with implementing cloud and the cost of mitigating those risks. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS:11 Strategy.

PKC Laundries: a start-up business at the crossroads

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-27
Author(s):  
Ammani Pagadala ◽  
Rajiv Gupta
Keyword(s):  
Strategic Management ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Vendor Management ◽  
Management Issues

Subject area Strategy Study level/applicability Strategic Management course in an undergraduate programme. Case overview PKC Laundries started a technology-driven laundry service that would be just a click away for their customers and would provide a quick and satisfying cost-effective solution to the customers’ laundry needs. The business, conceived as a start-up, was based on the asset-light aggregation model which used existing vendors to provide the service. The business has been running for almost two years now but has encountered certain operational challenges of vendor management and in generating sufficient operating profits. At this juncture, the question that is bothering the owners is would it be right if PKC went in for backward integration by investing in an automatic laundry plant to manage the risk of dependency on their vendors or should they strengthen and scale-up the present business model? The owners seem to be in a muddle about their strengths and weaknesses and the foreseeable opportunities and threats and going forward what sort of challenges should they prepare themselves for? This case requires the reader to understand the scenario in which a small and medium enterprise (SME) operates within its micro and macro environment. It then makes the reader think and critically analyse the dilemma the young entrepreneurs are facing and identify the problems and possible strategies to overcome these problems. The case highlights the challenges faced by PKC as an aggregator business and the scope of what PKC can do in the future to strengthen its position. It also explores various marketing management issues such as segmenting, targeting and positioning. The case also helps in understanding strategic management issues such as analysis and formulation and implementation of the strategy. Expected learning outcomes The expected learning outcomes are as follows: To understand the micro and macro environmental factors affecting a firm; to understand the issues involved in formulating and implementing a strategy; to understand the challenges faced by a start-up (both operational and for scaling up); and to understand the strategies adopted by the company to develop their business. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 11: Strategy.

CSR in village school: challenge after success

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Jagannath Mohanty ◽  
Shivnath Sinha
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Executive Education ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Village School ◽  
Management Technology ◽  
One Year ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Social Empowerment

Subject area Corporate social responsibility (CSR). Study level/applicability Graduate, undergraduate and executive education. Case overview The Institute of Management Technology, Nagpur, in the year 2013 started the Centre for Corporate Governance to emerge as an academic and research center for the industries in the vicinity of Nagpur and engage industries in CSR activities. On completion of one year of the center, the team responsible for execution of the programs was disappointed with the Centre’s progress. They decided to start an empowerment program with students from a poor village school. The initiative was well received by the school and its students. Now the team is facing the challenge of sustainability and scale up of the initiative. Expected learning outcomes To understand the concept and motives of CSR; to evaluate how a nonprofit-making entity can contribute to its communities; to explain the nuances of stakeholder engagement; social empowerment and inclusiveness; and student engagement and volunteerism. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 11: Strategy.

efin Recruiters: at the crossroads of the Indian RPO Industry

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nakul Parameswar ◽  
Ashwani Singh ◽  
Rajat Malik ◽  
Sanjay Dhir
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Master Of Business Administration ◽  
Strategic Positioning ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Management Level ◽  
Entrepreneurial Firm ◽  
Retaliatory Action ◽  
Executive Program

Subject area Strategic Management. Study level/applicability Master of Business Administration/Executive Program in Management Level. Case overview Rajat Malik started eFin Recruiters in January 2015 an RPO firm solely catering to the finance domain. Positioning eFin Recruiters in a niche domain created serious challenges to be tackled. Rajat was contemplating leveraging the Indian Government’s Startup India campaign launched on January 16, 2016 to his advantage to scale up eFin Recruiters’ operations by 400 per cent and compete with large established players in the RPO industry. Complacency and anticipated retaliatory action by competitors against eFin Recruiters’ positioning in the niche domain were a huge impediment in eFin Recruiters’ path to exponential growth. Expected learning outcomes This case will enable students to understand the concepts of industry analysis, strategic positioning from the view of an entrepreneurial firm and business level strategy. This case acts as a medium to integrate entrepreneurship and strategy which is of utmost relevance. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS: 11: Strategy.

RedBus: looking up to the clouds

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Surajit Ghosh Dastidar ◽  
Rahul Thakurta
Keyword(s):  
Cloud Computing ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
It Strategy ◽  
Master's Program ◽  
It Infrastructure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Emergent Technologies ◽  
Technical Issues ◽  
Executive Program

Subject area The case can be introduced in the information technology (IT) strategy course. The case can also fit well in courses like emergent technologies where the case forms the vehicle to show how cloud-based solutions can provide leverage to an organization. Study level/applicability The case is aligned more for management participants, for example, students who are enrolled in master's or executive program in management. Considering the master's program in management, the case can be introduced in the IT strategy course. The case can also fit well in courses like emergent technologies where the case forms the vehicle to show how cloud-based solutions can provide leverage to an organization. Assignment questions addressed below are designed from the perspective of teaching this case to a business student audience. The case could certainly be adjusted to fit the needs of students in more technical disciplines. Case overview Set in March 2009, Charan Padmaraju, the CTO of redBus was grappling with his companies IT infrastructure and scalability issues. He was considering cloud computing as a solution to all his worries. redBus was founded in August 2006 as a bus ticketing company in India. From INR 50 lakhs of gross bookings in their first financial year 2006-07 to an estimated INR 300 million in gross bookings in the financial year ending 2008-09, redBus had registered phenomenal growth. From selling 10 tickets a day, it now sold more than 4,000 tickets a day for more than 5,000 routes across 15 states in India. However, the IT infrastructure of redBus could not match up with their business needs and required frequent upgrades. Charan thought “The procurement of new servers, upgrading existing servers and most of the developer's time went into circumventing scaling issues which were not adding values to our core business.” He wondered “Can cloud computing be an answer to all my worries? “But what exactly is cloud computing? Will it solve my existing scalability issues? How reliable it is? Is it expensive? What is the time for deployment?” Expected learning outcomes To understand what is a business model; to appreciate the technical issues related to business expansion decisions; to explain the concepts behind cloud based solutions; and to demonstrate how adoption of the cloud solution can enable an organization to achieve competitive advantage. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes.

Road to default: Tracoma holding Berhad Bai Bithaman Ajil Debt securities (BaIDS)

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (5) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
A.M. Hafizi ◽  
Shahida Shahimi ◽  
Mohd Hafizuddin Syah Bangaan Abdullah ◽  
M. Badrul Hakimi Daud
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Capital Market ◽  
Credit Rating ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Capital Requirements ◽  
Fund Raising ◽  
Case Scenario ◽  
Worst Case ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Analytical Skills

Subject area Islamic Finance and Investment Study level/applicability Level of program/audience: Advanced undergraduate and postgraduate. Courses Intermediate and Advanced Finance, Economics, Islamic Economics & Finance, Islamic Banking & Finance, Islamic Capital Market and other relevant courses. Specifictopics/syllabus Capital markets instruments, conventional or Islamic. Case overview This case focuses on Tracoma Holding Berhad Bai Bithaman Ajil Debt Securities (BaIDS) amounting to RM 100 million which was issued by Tracoma Holding Berhad in 2005. It was the first issuance of a sukuk (Islamic debt securities or bond) by the company. The proceeds were used to finance its growth and to repay existing bank borrowings and capital requirements. This case is interesting, as it allows students to study the bai bithaman ajil sukuk structure and issuance process in the Malaysian capital market. It also provides basic financial transaction and credit rating of sukuk which requires analytical skills. Being a debt-based facility, the sukuk was subjected to credit rating evaluation by the MARC, the rating agency appointed by the company. Further downgrading of the sukuk meant it would lead to the worst-case scenario. Some actions needed to be taken to solve this issue; therefore, the CFO suggested an urgent meeting with the sukuk holders. Expected learning outcomes The students should be able to: understand the issuance process and the principle of BBA (bai bithamin ajil) in sukuk structure; understand reason(s) methods of fund raising by firm and the allocations of fund; understand the sukuk default issue; analyze the reasons for sukuk default; understand the importance of debt securities credit ratings; and identify investors' protection in the case of sukuk default. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes.

The South African public service wage bill deadlock in 2021: living on the edge

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Marianne Matthee ◽  
Albert Wöcke
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
South African ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
The South ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Level ◽  
Finance Minister ◽  
The Government

Subject area Macro-Economics. Study level/applicability Undergraduate and MBA. Case overview The COVID 19 pandemic-related restrictions devastated South Africa’s economy in 2020 and although the restrictions were generally less damaging than in 2020, the government had to budget for vaccinations and rebuild the economy. Public service unions had just announced that they were demanding an increase of 4% above inflation for their members and that they were preparing for a strike. They were bitter about the fact that the South African Government had withdrawn from the last year of a three-year wage agreement in February 2020 and their members had not received an increase for the two years. These demands and Finance Minister Mboweni’s response to them had to consider the structural and cyclical impact on the fiscus and economy. Expected learning outcomes The learning outcomes are as follows: understand the general objectives of fiscal policy and stakeholders’ interests; understand the tradeoffs in fiscal policy and the implications of taking a position; and make recommendations based on reasoned judgements about those recommendations. Complexity academic level Undergraduate and MBA level courses on Macro Economics. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 10: Public Sector Management.

NCR hospital: turnaround dilemmas of a leader

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-24
Author(s):  
Richa Awasthy ◽  
Rajen K. Gupta
Keyword(s):  
Human Resource Management ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Human Resource ◽  
Family Business ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Change Initiatives ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Specialty Hospital ◽  
Employee Attrition

Subject area Organizational diagnosis. The case addresses the issue of an outsider at a senior position in a family-run business. Study level/applicability MBA. Case overview NCR-Delhi is a multi-specialty hospital in Delhi and is essentially a family-run business. Though it had done well in the early years since its inception, it had been plagued by many problems and had undergone many changes in management and processes. An outsider joined it as the Facility Director (FD) two years ago. In these two years, he introduced multi-directional changes. However, he has not been able to achieve a complete turnaround of the hospital. The major issues facing him are financial, operational and personnel-related issues. The hospital is currently in a major financial crisis, which has been causing delays in disbursement of salaries and creating resource crunches in daily operations. Most of the patients are government empanelled patients, and collection of payments from such patients usually takes at least three months. Employee attrition and customer satisfaction are also continuing challenges. Other issues include lack of proper support and interference from top management. The FD has been showing considerable prowess and capability in leading the organization, but has not been able to achieve the desired results owing to the above factors. Expected learning outcomes To understand the frameworks and process of organizational diagnosis; to understand the influence of change initiatives on organizational culture; and to understand the complexity of family business and what happens when an outsider leader joins family business. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 6: Human Resource Management.

Gold Valley Chemical Corporation Dubai

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Gwendolyn Rodrigues
Keyword(s):  
Change Management ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
United Arab Emirate ◽  
New Products ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Chemical Corporation ◽  
Innovation And Change ◽  
Business And Management

Subject area Entrepreneurship, innovation, change management. Study level/applicability Undergraduate and Postgraduate Business and Management. Case overview This case study focuses on the development of a young entrepreneur in an indigenous industry in Dubai, United Arab Emirate. His entrepreneurial zeal resulted in the creation of a culture of innovation. His fascination for change spurred him to develop new products and he won accolades for innovation. Expected learning outcomes This case can be used to teach entrepreneurial development, innovation and change management. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are also available.

Establishing a start-up in Saudi Arabia: the Innosoft story

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Riaz Ahmed Mohammed ◽  
Mamon Horoub ◽  
Husam Walwil
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Business Model ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Model Development ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Business Success ◽  
It Services ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Level

Subject Area Entrepreneurship. Learning outcomes The learning outcomes are to explain the importance of passion in entrepreneurship, develop an understanding of the business model canvas and its elements, identify typical challenges faced by a startup (during early days and while growing), explain the role of seed fund and customer feedback for small business success and identify the appropriate hiring strategy for startups. Case overview/synopsis The case traces the journey of two Saudi under-graduate software engineering students, namely, Loai Labani and Riyadh Al-Tayib, who had a vision to establish the best information technology (IT) services company in Saudi Arabia. With no previous experience of establishing a company or working for a startup, coupled with the fact that the culture of entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia is still in its ascendancy, they knew it would be challenging. Nevertheless, at the same time, they were convinced it would be totally up to them to do the hard work needed to propel their vision into reality. The case, after introducing the founders, talks about their respective backgrounds and how it complemented their goal/vision of establishing an IT services company. The case, with references from the literature, also throws light on the entrepreneurship culture in Saudi Arabia but the focus is the various challenges faced by the team in setting up their business and the strategies they used in dealing with the challenges. Some of the challenges discussed are securing early customers, initial financing to support startup, business model development, managing daily operations and hiring and marketing strategy. The case ends with another challenge faced by the founders, for the readers to think about the possible ways of dealing with the challenge at hand. Complexity academic level The case will be used for under-graduate level students. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

Reviving heritage brands – the case of Petrodvorets Watch Factory

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Johanna Frösén ◽  
Mikko Laukkanen
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Consumer Behaviour ◽  
Brand Management ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Russian Market ◽  
Advanced Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Entrepreneurial Marketing ◽  
Teaching Objectives ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities

Subject area Branding and brand management. Study level/applicability This case is intended for advanced-level marketing courses (MSc, MBA and EMBA). Students should have some familiarity with central marketing issues and concepts, specifically related to segmentation, targeting and positioning; branding and brand management; and consumer behaviour. Case overview This teaching case concentrates on branding in an emerging markets context, heritage branding, brand revival and entrepreneurial marketing. The case illustrates the challenges and opportunities related to re-launching a heritage brand in the Russian market. Expected learning outcomes The teaching objectives of the case are to provide students with an understanding of how branding tools are applied in an entrepreneurial context and how brands, especially heritage brands, are revived and managed. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code Marketing.

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